Phuture
ListenPhuture Jacks · 1987
Phuture — “Phuture Jacks,” from the reverse of the Acid Tracks twelve-inch.
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1987 · Trax Records
Acid Tracks / Phuture Jacks / Your Only Friend
A cheap bass machine, a patient DJ and three curious Chicago musicians helped give acid house its sound. Phuture’s “Acid Tracks” reached vinyl in 1987 after Ron Hardy had made its unsettling electronic pulse a fixture at the Music Box. [1] [2]
| Accession | OMMA-0071 |
|---|---|
| Artist | Phuture |
| Release | 1987 · United States |
| Label | Trax Records · TX142 |
| Format | 12-inch vinyl single · 33⅓ rpm |
| Issue | US commercial issue |
| Runouts | Not documented |
| Recorded grade | NM |
Release history and significance
DJ Pierre recalled that Spanky bought a Roland TB-303 for forty dollars. They did not yet understand how to program it, but Pierre began turning its controls while a beat played. Spanky encouraged him to keep going. The changing, squelching bass sound became the basis of “Acid Tracks.” [1]
Getting the music onto a dance floor took another kind of experiment. Pierre told DJ Mag that Ron Hardy played the tape four times in one night at the Music Box. The first plays cleared the floor; by the fourth, the crowd had embraced it. Clubgoers came to know it as Ron Hardy’s acid track, a name that displaced the group’s original “In Your Mind.” [2]
Pierre wanted to know how to turn the tape into a record. He passed a note to Marshall Jefferson through Curtis McClain at a show. The next day, a message from his mother said that Jefferson had called; Pierre initially thought someone was playing a joke. Jefferson did call, and went on to produce and mix the Trax release. [1] [3]
The twelve-inch pairs the long title track with “Phuture Jacks” and “Your Only Friend.” The latter is a warning about cocaine, giving the record a darker narrative voice alongside its dance-floor experiments. [2] [3]
Market context
Discogs lists sales for the red-label edition from US$5 to US$101.28, with a median of US$41.74, as recorded on 13 September 2026. [3]
Physical Description
Black vinyl twelve-inch with red Trax labels. “Acid Tracks” occupies side A; “Phuture Jacks” and “Your Only Friend” share side B. [3]
Condition
Recorded as Near Mint at acquisition.
Provenance
Acquired through Discogs from seller Pokki on 29 November 2025.
Sources
- Red Bull Music Academy, DJ Pierre interview. 5 December 2012. Pierre recalls the bass machine experiment and contacting Marshall Jefferson.
- Andrew Whitehurst, Game Changers: Phuture — Acid Tracks, DJ Mag. 9 July 2014. DJ Pierre recalls Ron Hardy’s club plays and the record’s origins.
- Discogs, Phuture — Acid Tracks, release 1949. 1987 US red-label edition, track configuration, production credits and sales history.
Catalogue text reviewed 13 September 2026.